GARY NUMAN: SAVAGE (SONGS FROM A BROKEN WORLD) Bristol Colston Hall 5.10.2017
Posted on: 2017-10-05
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I left feeling that seeing this amazing artist has just re-enlightened my yearning for more and promising myself not to leave it so long before I see Mr Numan again.
Entering my old stomping ground, it felt surreal to be going into the same building that for years in the 70s and 80s was the popular choice for many of the punk bands that were touring at the time. But in the year of 1979 I decided to attend the much talked about Gary Numan and Tubeway Army, following the success of Are Friends Electric and The Pleasure Principle album. What I heard and saw that night has stayed in my memories ever since as a gig I will never forget!
The use of the lighting and effects at the time were something to behold, and I remember being mesmerised by the performance and music and loved how different this was to any other bands I had seen around at this time.
The bell rings to announce the support band going on in 10 minutes, and walking down the steps to the stalls, I could then see the older part of the building which I was more familiar with from all those years ago. The front of the stalls had been removed, and we stand in the thick of the crowd. We are surrounded by a sea of black clothing, including myself of course, as this had always been the uniform for all followers of Numan over the years.
Jayce Lewis the support act begin to play. They consist of two bass players, keyboard, drummer and the young male vocalist. The music is a heavy full on mix, with undertones of Sisters of Mercy thrown in, and with posing podiums for the band to stand on, they certainly make their mark.
With the support gone, the anticipation builds for the main event of the night, Gary Numan. He appears with the band dressed in middle eastern style dress, with his black hair and his still moody stare of eye liner eyes that he became famous for, setting the style for many synth bands to follow.
The back drop of monitors behind the band have powerful lighting effects along with overhead as well, these monitors also tell the story for the new album, with video scenes to match the new songs from Savage, which I am not yet familiar with. But 3 or 4 songs into the set, I recognise a favourite from back in the day, as he sings Down in the Park, its more punchy than I remember, but with the advance of technology and a more rock based band the sound is still as I recall but more up to date.
A few songs more and My Name is Ruin from the new album, chants though the hall, with stunning video behind, this is a song I played on YouTube earlier that week. A little different to the old material that I had grown to love, but still with the similar synth sounds I enjoyed before.
Then Cars rings out loud and proud, and the audience sing along, taking their trips down memory lane with me. Playing more of the new album I am also familiar with When the World comes Apart, this feels like a good track to take them to the finish. The crowd cry for more, and he doesn’t fail us, and returns to a huge applause.
For the encore we hear, Me, and then to finish the night on a high, Are Friends Electric pulses out, and the crowd once again join in with the tribal chants of the chorus, singing word for word… these are diehard fans, who would follow their hero where ever he shall go!
I for one, left feeling that all those years ago of seeing this amazing artist, has just re-enlightened my yearning for more, so I found myself purchasing a copy of Savage (Songs From a Broken World) on the way out, and promising myself not to leave it so long before I see Mr Numan again.
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Andrea was born and raised in Bristol but moved to Weston-super-Mare as a teenager, around the same time the punk scene hit Britain and was right in the thick of it. Embracing the music and bands of that time, she has been a regular at most of the Bristol gigs ever since. Music, especially live, is in her veins and after performing in bands of her own over the years she continues to sing in a local choir. “Music has and always will be a massive part of my life, and I will be a party girl ‘til the day I die.”
